Thomas H. Lee Partners to Acquire Sword Insurance

LONDON--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Thomas H. Lee Partners, L.P. (“THL”), a leading private equity firm, and French-owned Sword Group (NYSE Euronext: SWP) announced today that they have signed a definitive agreement under which THL will acquire Sword Insurance, a leading global provider of software and services to the property and casualty insurance industry, from Sword Group. The transaction is expected to close next month, subject to regulatory approvals. Additional terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

“We are very proud of the leadership position we’ve established in both the US and the UK,” said Steve Hauck, Co-CEO of Sword Insurance. “Much of our expanded geographic footprint, growing blue chip customer base and diversified product set is attributable to Sword Group’s support over the last year and a half. We are excited to partner with THL, a firm with a proven track record in both insurance and technology and deep experience in helping companies accelerate growth through providing exceptional service. THL will support us in realising our vision to support a greater portion of our customers’ complex technology needs as we strive to become a top 5 global technology vendor."

“Sword Insurance’s leading products, AgencyPortal and Open+, are best-in-class products and integral components of an insurance carrier’s technology solution. We believe that there is an enormous market opportunity available through continued investment in customer service and expanded product solutions to meet insurance carriers’ evolving technology needs,” said Charles A. Brizius, Managing Director at Thomas H. Lee Partners.

“We developed an extremely successful relationship with Sword Insurance and are proud of the company’s performance,” said Jacques Mottard, Executive Chairman of the Sword Group. “We are pleased that this transaction recognises the company’s value as a leading provider of software and services to insurance carriers and are confident of their future success.”

About Thomas H. Lee Partners

Thomas H. Lee Partners, L.P. ("THL") is one of the world's oldest and most experienced private equity firms. The firm invests in growth-oriented global businesses, headquartered principally in North America, within three broad sectors: Consumer & Healthcare, Media & Information Services and Business & Financial Services. THL's team of investment and operating professionals partner with its portfolio company management teams to identify and implement business model improvements that accelerate sustainable revenue and profit growth. Since its founding in 1974, THL has invested in more than 100 portfolio companies and has completed over 200 add-on acquisitions, representing a combined value of more than $150 billion. THL's two most recent investment funds comprise more than $14 billion of aggregate committed equity capital. Notable transactions sponsored by THL include Aramark, Clear Channel, Dunkin' Brands, Michael Foods, Ceridian, Experian, Fidelity National Information Services, Houghton Mifflin, inVentiv Health, Intermedix Corporation, MoneyGram International, The Nielsen Company, ProSiebenSat.1, Snapple, Warner Chilcott, Warner Music Group and West Corporation. For more information, please visit www.thl.com.

About Sword Insurance

Sword Insurance, a Sword Group division, delivers software solutions that help companies around the world sell their products and service their clients throughout the customer lifecycle. We offer the world's leading web-based distribution technologies, global policy administration solutions and robust business intelligence tools—a powerful mix that makes the complex business of insurance easier and smarter, and helps our customers seize opportunities and gain a competitive edge quickly. For more information, please visit: www.sword-insurance.com.

About Sword Group

Sword Group delivers high value business applications to the world’s largest companies globally. With operations in 37 countries, Sword today employs over 1,800 people and generates around €185m in consolidated revenue. Our skills, infrastructure and experience are trusted to help our customers across regulated industries optimise performance, increase efficiencies and maximise return on investment. For more information, please visit: www.sword-group.com.

Thomas H. Lee Partners, L.P.:
Sard Verbinnen & CoRobin Weinberg, 212-687-8080 or David Isaacs, 415-618-8750
or
Sword Insurance UK:Phil Race: +44(0)20-7553-2534
Phil.race@sword-intech.com
or
Sword Insurance US:Abigail Mitchell, 857-239-5694
or
Sword Group:
Stéphanie Desmaris, +33 (0)4 72 85 37 40

Source: Sword Insurance